Mr. James was born in Racine on October 14, 1921, the son of the late Stanley and Pauline C. (nee: Skibicka) Jurkiewicz. He received his education in Europe, mostly Poland. He proudly served our country with the U.S. Army during WWII. He was a corporal serving in the European Theatre at Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge in the Third Army under General Patton.On August 10, 1968, in Holy Trinity Catholic Church, he was united in marriage to the former Vera V. Valente. She preceded him in death on January 7, 1993.
After returning from the service, Mr. James worked at Young Radiator for three years. He then joined the staff of the City of Racine Public Works Dept. where he was employed for 35 years, retiring in 1985. He was a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church for over 30 years. After the church closed in 1998, he joined St. Lucy Catholic Church. Mr. James was a member of the City of Racine Retirees Club and the City of Racine 20 year Club.
He was an avid bowler, fisherman, gardener and woodworker, and he enjoyed walking.
Surviving are his twin sons, Kevin (Nancy) James of Pleasant Prairie and Kelvin James of Pleasant Prairie; daughter, Karen (David) Ficker, and their twins, Mackenzie and Pamela, all of Ashburn, VA; step-sons Gerard (Vickie) Olszewski, of West Allis, and Walter (Lisa) Olszewski, of Racine; step-daughters, Karen (Al) Zenger, of Shelton, WA, and Marie Collins, of Athens, TN; grandchildren; and soon to be great-grandchildren; brothers, Vincent Jurkiewicz and Alex Jurkiewicz, both of Racine; sisters, Helen Scuderi, of Long Island, NY, and Barbara (Art) Rapkine, of Simi Valley, CA; sisters-in-law Rose (Edward) Mozenski, Mary (Ray) Stevens, Vivian Graceffa, and Vilma Christensen, all of Racine, and Valeria Krizon, of Milwaukee. His nieces, nephews, other relatives, and friends further survive him.
In addition to his parents and beloved wife, Vera, Mr. James was preceded in death by his brothers, Chester and Stanley Jurkiewicz; step-son, Roger Collins; brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Michael Scuderi and Carl Graceffa, Valentino and Norma Valente, Dorothy Jurkiewicz, and Jack Christensen; and niece, Paula Klimek.
His Funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. Lucy Catholic Church, 3101 Drexel Ave., on Monday, October 26, at 10:30 a.m., with Rev. Mark R. Jones officiating. Visitation will be at the church on Monday from 9:30 a.m. until the time of the Mass. Burial, with full military honors, will follow in Holy Cross Cemetery, Hwy 32. In memory of Michael, please send any memorials to Samaritan’s Purse.
The family would like to deeply thank Dr. Zaworski and the staff of Visiting Physicians, Wheaton Franciscan Visiting Nurses, and Dr. Kim and the staff of Seasons Hospice.
DRAEGER-LANGENDORF FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATORY
4600 County Line Rd., Racine 262-552-9000
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